ROCHESTER -- After 110 minutes of play Sunday against fourth-seed Ohio State, Oakland women's soccer goalkeeper Shannon Coley had the Golden Grizzlies on the precipice of the second round of the NCAA tournament.

"My mindset going in was 'I just need to get one (save)' and then I got three," Coley said. "I was just going to try to read the players and hope for a little luck."

Coley was more than lucky Sunday after recording eight of the Grizzlies' 10 shutouts this season.

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The Grizzlies take on No. 15-ranked Texas A&M Friday at 4:30 p.m. in Tallahassee, Fla.

Oakland (11-5-4), the Summit League regular-season and conference tournament champion, is making its seventh appearance in the NCAA tournament this season.

Coley's teammate Nicole DeLuca also remained calm during her kick Sunday. She was so subdued, in fact, she didn't realize the implication of her match-winning kick.

"Walking up there, I didn't know which side I was going to go to," she said. "After I made it ... I wasn't sure if we had won or not. I looked at Shannon and she was just standing there.

"I went to run back to my teammates and they were sprinting toward (Shannon) and I."

Coach Nick O'Shea recognized the opportunity for the Grizzlies in penalty-kick situations and implemented confidence-building exercises in practice.

"That process began three weeks ago," he said. "We knew we were going to win a game on penalty kicks. We didn't know if it was going to be in the Summit League or the NCAA tournament, but we've been working on that."

Coley, who played at Auburn Hills Avondale, recorded four consecutive shutouts before Sunday's 1-1 tie. She faced just seven shots on goal out of the Buckeyes' 28 total.

"It's not just me back there," she said. "Our defense is really tight right now. They're working as a team and they're blocking shots and making sure I don't have to deal with much. It makes it that much easier if I only have to make five saves a game rather than 10."

Coley has maintained a 0.80 goals-against average in 17 games this season, making 78 saves while going 10-4-3 in net for Oakland.

Lake Orion native Julianne Boyle is part of the buffer effect in the midfield.

"We have a lot of experience and leadership in the back," she said. "We're strong defensively and that affords us the ability to open up and play the way we do because we have people we can rely on."

O'Shea said limiting the Aggies' opportunities' to run set plays will be off the essence for Oakland.

"They have a tall, fast team and a stingy defense," he said. "The longer we can keep it scoreless or have a lead, the more frustrated they will get and the more they will maybe play more direct and come out of their gameplan."

"We can't afford to have three or four players have a bad game. Nobody had a bad game against Ohio State because of the focus and intensity we brought."

Before meeting Ohio State, the Golden Grizzlies had already tied two other matches against Big Ten competition this season and fell 1-0 to Michigan. The accelerated competition paid off.

"Knowing we competed with them helped us knowing we could compete with (that level of competition)," DeLuca said.

The winner of Friday's game advances to play the winner of the Texas Tech-Florida State game Sunday, Nov. 18.

"A big part of winning that game was getting the confidence to believe we can do this," Boyle, a junior, said. "All of my years here have been working hard and leading up to this point."

Boyle is just one of nearly a half-roster comprised of players from Oakland County. O'Shea credited the local club system and its coaches for priming talented recruits in Oakland's back yard. Julianne Boyle's older sister, Jessica, was a two-time Summit League tournament MVP, an award Julianne Boyle earned this season.

"I knew there was a really good chance of playing in the NCAA tournament at Oakland," she said. "My sister played for Oakland when I was being recruited. At the time, Oakland was a strong force in the Summit League."

O'Shea has been at the helm since the program's inception in 1994. Advancing in the NCAA tournament has long been part of the checklist.

"That's a goal I've had for a long time," he said. "It's the next step, really."